Foo Fighters @ London O2 & How to Get Concert Tickets

mr_goo
mr_goo Posts: 3,770
edited July 2017 in The cake stop
So the Foo Fighters announce a one off gig at the O2 in celebration of the arenas 10th anniversary. Tickets went on sale at 4pm this afternoon. Fortunately I was working locally, so got back home early enough to be online in time. I had a couple of approved agency sites running and by the time my time came all tickets gone. That was 4.09pm.
Now tickets are going for stupid money on reseller sites.
How the heck does anyone get a ticket for a big gig these days? Is it just pure luck?...... think I've answered my own question.

Yours extremely disappointed
Goo.
Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.

Comments

  • eric_draven
    eric_draven Posts: 1,192
    Don't get me started on this one,trying to get tickets now for big gigs is nothing short of a farce and bloody nightmare,last gigs I have not got near are The Cure all sold on pre sales The Pixies and Kraftwerk,get so sick of this,but really don't know the answer to it maybe a Glastonbury style where your name is on the ticket and you need ID with you,Think Iron Maiden tried/did something like this on the current tour
  • mr_goo
    mr_goo Posts: 3,770
    Metallica have done the ID'd tickets for their gigs in London. Think face value was 50 to 65 quid. And get this, it included a copy of their new album either in CD or digital format. You can't get much better than that.
    Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.
  • orraloon
    orraloon Posts: 13,272
    Got to see Kraftwerk in Oxford early June. Got advance notice from the theatre, got on as soon as website opened, and got good tickets, so can work for the individual rather than the touts. Kraftwerk tickets were also ID-ed and ID was checked on the door.

    Joining the artists mailing list can help get into presales. But is hard work, need to be able to get on to the websites as soon as open and even then... For us outdoor workers, got to be lucky and it be an at-home day.
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,597
    ID tickets with some form of official transfer subject to an admin charge is the only way forward. It should stop people buying to re-sell and also make people think about whether they can actually attend the site. Add in to that blocking future purchases by anyone found to have sold / attempted to sell their tickets. Another issue is the amount of sponsors who then get those priority tickets for pre-sale. Problem is there's no real incentive for promoters to do any of this as all they care about is the primary sale so you're relying on bands pushing for it to help the real fans.
  • mr_goo
    mr_goo Posts: 3,770
    I think a major problem with O2 arena is its title sponsor who run a priority service for its phone service customers. That is probably where majority of tickets went.
    Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.
  • mr_goo
    mr_goo Posts: 3,770
    Some tickets for the Foos gig are now being sold on resellers site for £900 ! I think the original face value was under £100.
    It's a bl00dy disgrace. Real fans being priced out.

    Looks like I'm off to UFO at the Brook, Southampton later in year. Just hope Phil Mogg isn't jacked up or pixxed up.
    Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,660
    Welcome to London Goo.

    I'm regularly in the online queue 10-15 minutes before for any number of London tickets and not just bands.

    For Radiohead I had 4 colleagues in the online queue for me too.

    It's just luck of the draw and they're over subscribed enough that most people get unlucky.

    This year for the first time I got tickets; to see the XX. Imagine it was mainly to do with the fact they were playing 7 nights in a row.

    Nothing to do with what mobile provider you're on.
    _
  • vimfuego
    vimfuego Posts: 1,783
    I actually managed to get tickets for the Foo Fighters gig. Was online at the stroke of 4 using 3 different ticket sites - all of which instantly crashed or chucked me out, then when re-loaded just hung for a couple of minutes when you clicked on a select tickets option. Anyway, eventually one of them allowed me through - not the best seats in the house but by that point it was just accept whatever comes up rather than risk it.

    Max 2 tickets per buyer & you need ID to get in apparently
    CS7
    Surrey Hills
    What's a Zwift?
  • mr_goo
    mr_goo Posts: 3,770
    vimfuego wrote:
    I actually managed to get tickets for the Foo Fighters gig. Was online at the stroke of 4 using 3 different ticket sites - all of which instantly crashed or chucked me out, then when re-loaded just hung for a couple of minutes when you clicked on a select tickets option. Anyway, eventually one of them allowed me through - not the best seats in the house but by that point it was just accept whatever comes up rather than risk it.

    Max 2 tickets per buyer & you need ID to get in apparently

    Enjoy.

    I'm hoping they do world tour in 2018 with a few UK dates. Hopefully a couple of nights at Wembley Stadium or Olympic Stadium.
    Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.
  • mr_goo
    mr_goo Posts: 3,770
    On plus side we got tickets for the Air Tattoo in couple of weeks. 7 hours of military hardware flying display, its a dofferer for of lour heavy mEtal, all good.
    My son and I haven't been for years (he's a lot bigger now). Last time we went the USAF invited us into their special forces hercules and my son got to sit in the pilots seat. Made his day. Not sure that offer will stand for a 21 year old, however it's inspired him to study hard and he has registered for air crew with the RAF.

    Little acts of kindness can inspire.
    Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.
  • vimfuego
    vimfuego Posts: 1,783
    Nice
    CS7
    Surrey Hills
    What's a Zwift?
  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 27,496
    I've been given supposedly a top tip for the future. Sign up for favourite bands fan clubs, quite often for free, and get advance tickets. I've not tried it yet but the person in question appears to get tickets for any gig they want.
    The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
    I am not sure. You have no chance.
    Veronese68 wrote:
    PB is the most sensible person on here.
  • mr_goo
    mr_goo Posts: 3,770
    PBlakeney wrote:
    I've been given supposedly a top tip for the future. Sign up for favourite bands fan clubs, quite often for free, and get advance tickets. I've not tried it yet but the person in question appears to get tickets for any gig they want.

    Sage advice.
    A couple hundred UK subscribers to Foos club got faux boarding passes earlier this year. They transpired to be a pair tickets to a free gig at the community centre in Frome, Somerset. I watched the live stream. A fantastic gig.

    I'm gonna sub to Van Halen as they're rumoured to be doing a 50/50 world tour in 2018 with both Sammy Hagar and David Lee Roth as joint frontmen.
    Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.
  • kingstongraham
    kingstongraham Posts: 28,228
    Mr Goo wrote:
    PBlakeney wrote:
    I've been given supposedly a top tip for the future. Sign up for favourite bands fan clubs, quite often for free, and get advance tickets. I've not tried it yet but the person in question appears to get tickets for any gig they want.

    Sage advice.
    A couple hundred UK subscribers to Foos club got faux boarding passes earlier this year. They transpired to be a pair tickets to a free gig at the community centre in Frome, Somerset. I watched the live stream. A fantastic gig.

    I'm gonna sub to Van Halen as they're rumoured to be doing a 50/50 world tour in 2018 with both Sammy Hagar and David Lee Roth as joint frontmen.

    If you've not seen them doing Jump at Greensboro, it's an amazing piece of work. On YouTube.
  • lettingthedaysgoby
    lettingthedaysgoby Posts: 1,732
    It's a huge problem, one that promoters aren't really that bothered about fixing as "sold out in 4 minutes" stories are good publicity.

    Thankfully my work means I haven't had to buy a gig ticket for over 10 years, but I do feel sorry for those that can't get to see the acts they want.

    My answer? Ignore the enormodome shows and go see smaller bands in local venues.
  • dov2711
    dov2711 Posts: 131
    It's hard enough with general ticketing but spare a thought for those of us who have try to get disabled access provision. The dedicated number is solid engaged for at least an hour either side of "go time" no online facility and the inevitable wait to be told the gig is sold out means general access tickets are also gone by then.

    My kid who amidst other challenges stands a mighty 4'7" at her adult height is currently standing behind 4000 adults at a concert where we missed out on disability access tickets (by waiting) we missed general access and had to pay the pleasure of 6x the face value to get her in at all.
  • amrushton
    amrushton Posts: 1,313
    The solution is often with the artists. Some artists tout their own tickets and people like Ticketmaster buy the tickets for their own secondary site. I noticed Ed Sheeran had NO presales and buyers would have to come to the gig with tickets/sale confirmation/id and card used to buy the tickets. of course it relies on the door staff to check the tickets and not just collect £20 sneaked over. Ticketmaster had a CEO called Irv Azoff who was also The Eagles manager - bit of a conflict of interest there. Not going to happen but the sight of a an empty venue (supposedly sold out) because the tickets were on secondary sites would be a good thing for some artists. I don't bother with gigs now except in small venues. £100 a ticket, £10 per ticket booking fee? Imagine if you go to Tesco, and at the till you get told there is a £10 trolley fee and a £3.50 fee for self-scan or quick checkout
  • Frank Wilson
    Frank Wilson Posts: 930
    The simple answer is to stop following LOI music.

Categories